After reading the latest issue of Yankee Brew News, It had told about two brewers buying a brewery in Williamsburg owned by Opa Opa steakhouse. This is exactly what it says and I hope it doesn’t get me in trouble!

Big Contract Brewing Services

Dennis Bates and Mike Charpentier who bought the 20-barrel brewery behind Brewmaster’s Tavern in Williamsburg in June 2016 (previously owned by the Opa Opa) are looking toward opening a Tasting Room at the same site. There’s plenty of beer to be had, as they are also renting the seven barrel system at the Opa Opa Steakhouse and Brewery in Southampton. “It’s a place for patrons to come in and have a taste and maybe some retail space would be perfect” Mike said. This new venture called Brewmasters Brewing service brew and packages, (read “contract brews”) for over 14 beer labels throughout the country.

Well on two different visits to Opa Opa Steakhouse, I had asked the owner Thamus and then his son-in-law Steve about the story, and they both told me, that it was only renting. So even though there are two different stories, I will believe Thamus and Steve till proven wrong!

Sorry for all the missing time, but I was enjoying looking and imbibing rather than writing about my outings. Well I have some news for you to ponder because it’s got me really thinking about it after reading the latest issue of Yankee Brew News stay tuned!

For the past several weeks, our Chef Ryan has been sneaking off in the middle of the day to sit in the Beer Hall with Lennie and Josh. We noticed that after these meetings, they all seemed very happy. Turns out they were tasting all of the menu items for our upcoming beer dinner, and deciding which beer tastes best with each course. We call this work.

You can taste the fruits of their labor at a special Beer Dinner in our Investors Pub on Wednesday, March 23. Chef Ryan will guide you through five courses and the beers we chose to pair with each. Taps will open at 6:00 PM, and we’ll sit down for dinner at 6:30.

Reservations are $50 per person, and space is very limited. Check out the full menu below and

Pub Night is back this evening, and you’ll have another chance to enjoy our brand new Adambier, Divine Reserve No. 16, on draft. We’ll also be tapping a special cask of Ale Wagger Brown, your dog’s favorite beer.

Side note: If you’ve got a rescue animal that you want featured on our social media, take a photo of him/her with a bottle of Ale Wagger and send it to

Back to Pub Night: If you want to make a night of it and enjoy dinner here too, Chef Ryan will be doing his thing in the kitchen. In addition to the usual Burgers, Brats and Crawfish Rolls, our kitchen crew will be preparing Frito Pies (or Chili Cheese Fries!), Blackened Chicken Wings and Tacos a la Plancha – skirt steak, onion and cilantro, queso fresco, lime and corn tortillas. Yum.

Santo De Mayo 5K at the Brewery Sunday, May 1 at 8:30 AMIn May, we’re bringing our love of beer and love of running together for our Second Annual Santo De Mayo 5K, and it’s the perfect way to kick off the Santo De Mayo season. The run will start at the brewery at 8:30 AM, snake through Downtown and wind up back here – where we’ll be conveniently waiting for you with beers!

Your entry will include a commemorative Santo De Mayo 5K pint glass, a technical race shirt, three tasty beers, chip timing and a commemorative race bib.

Entry is $40 to run. If you’re not into running or you want to just cheer on a friend, you can still join us – $20 will get you a Beer & Party Pass.

If you love Saint Arnold beer (we’re kind of assuming you do) and like to work hard (we hope you do), you might just be the next member of our Brew Crew! We have several positions open at the moment including: Accounting Manager, Beer Hall Server and Cook.

If you’re Spring Breaking in Florida this year, we want in. We’ll ride in your checked bag. We won’t bother you a bit. Actually, never mind. You don’t need to smuggle your favorite beer to Florida – we sell it there!

Next Wednesday, March 16, Lulu’s Bait Shack on Fort Lauderdale Beach is the place to be for Saint Arnold goodness. They’ll have live music and Saint Arnold swag starting at 7:00 PM. And of course, beer. Cold, delicious beer.

If you’re elsewhere in South Florida, don’t fret. You can find our beer from Delray Beach all the way south to Key West. If a local asks you what you’re drinking, spread the good word of the Patron Saint of Brewers.

Watch the Tournament at Doc’s

March 17 – April 4

We can’t say the name of the basketball tournament that’s about to begin, but we think you know the one. It’s this month, and it’s chaos.

Doc’s in Montrose is the place to be for the Official Saint Arnold Watch Party – they’ll feature $3.75 drafts of our beer all tournament long, as well as prizes during select games.

Let Saint Arnold be the official beer of your winning bracket. (And your terrible one too!)

The 2016 Hop Cycle has begun with the release of Cultivator Helles Bock! Emerging from springtime’s fertile ground, our Cultivator celebrates the start of hop-growing season as sprawling fields of hop rhizomes climb and tether to hop bines. This spring bock delivers hints of toasted grains, fresh baked bread and delicate floral hops. Cultivator is available on draft and in 6-packs, 12-packs, and cases of 12-ounce bottles, as well as 12-packs of 12-ounce cans.

With the arrival of Cultivator comes a new Anthology sampler pack for springtime. Each Anthology Spring 12-pack is blooming with our best-selling Perpetual IPA plus year-round favorite HopBack Amber, Hop Cycle seasonal Cultivator Helles Bock, and another exclusive limited Scratch Beer release – a French-style Saison. Anthology Spring will be available in all of our distribution markets by mid-February. In the coming months, Anthology Summer and Fall will follow suit to include Perpetual IPA as well as rotating year-round, Hop Cycle, and Scratch Series beers.

We’re still knee-deep in Nugget Nectar season, but don’t blink. It’ll be gone before you know it. Grab some while you can before this once-a-year release disappears until 2017.

It’s impossible to forget your first squeeze. Once a year, as the newest humulus lupulus harvest arrives at Tröegs, we blend these super-fresh hops into an Imperial Amber Ale. Excessively dry-hopped, Nugget Nectar is an explosion of pine, resin and mango.

DreamWeaver Wheat is coming in 12-packs! The last of our year-round beers to be released in this format, look for DreamWeaver 12-packs everywhere Tröegs beer is sold by late February. The dream begins with open-top fermentation. At high krausen, a foamy, rocky yeast head crests the sides of the fermenter, releasing notes of black pepper and spicy clove. Unfiltered and cloudy with yeast, DreamWeaver is slightly tart and downright refreshing.

After launching in North Carolina back in September 2014, we’re gearing up to open two additional markets in this juggernaut of a craft beer state. By March, you can expect to see Tröegs throughout Asheville and the Outer Banks. We’ve already begun shipping beer to Asheville, so look for Tröegs to start popping up on shelves as early as mid-February. We plan to follow up with Outer Banks in early March. With the addition of these two markets, Tröegs will now be available across the entire state of North Carolina! Check out our Brew Finder to locate Tröegs beers near you.

Last month, we announced plans for our Splinter Cellar and the addition of three new foeders to expand our Splinter Beer Series of wood-aged beers. We’re excited to release a few Splinter Beers over the next few months leading up to the completion of the Splinter Cellar in early June. The first release will be barrel-aged Troegenator, available exclusively at the brewery in 375mL cork & cage bottles on Monday, February 29. We’ll release a few other Splinter Beers over the next few months, including Wild Elf, our first foeder experiment featuring sour cherries harvested locally from Peter’s Orchard. Tune in to troegs.com as well as our social media channels for all the latest Splinter Series news and announcements.

Are you a craft beer drinker who also happens to be a foodie? Check out our detailed Food Notes for all of our beers at troegs.com/beers. Each illustrative artwork includes a handy profile as well as contrasting and complementary food and flavor pairings for each of our beers. We’ve also included foods to steer clear of when pairing with specific beers. Next time you’re planning a food and beer pairing or tasting event, be sure to check them out! You can also purchase art prints and postcards of all our Food Notes at shop.troegs.com.

Our Annual St. Patrick’s Day Party at the Brewery Thursday, March 17 – 6:00 – 9:00 PMOn Thursday, March 17, we’ll be hosting our annual Saint Arnold Meets St. Patrick Party. The big show for the evening (besides the beer) is our Donegal Beard Growing Competition.

Dozens of brave contestants have been growing out their facial hair since the beginning of the year, and one of them will take home an iPad for their efforts. Of course, they will also get the glory of being a Donegal Beard Growing Champion. That is truly priceless.

For the evening, we’ll have our regular lineup of beers on tap, and we’ll also be tapping special casks of Divine Reserve No. 15, our Russian Imperial Stout released last year. Irish Stew in Bread Bowls will be available for purchase from our kitchen. All in all, it’s a lot more fun than drinking green beer.

Admission is $28 per person and includes beer (including one pint of cask conditioned DR15) and a commemorative pint glass. Attendance is limited, and this event sells out quickly every year.

Gather your nerdiest friends. Assemble the geekiest team, and bring them to Pub Night this Friday. Geeks Who Drink Trivia is back! The fun starts at 7:00 PM, and Saint Arnold prizes await those with the most useless knowledge.

We’ll also be tapping two special cask conditioned beers during Pub Night. First, we’ll have a cask of Icon Blue – Coffee Porter with Toasted Coconut. We’ll also be tapping an Art Car IPA cask with Huell Melon hops, a German hop that lends melon and berry aroma. Just when you thought Art Car IPA couldn’t get any better!

If disc golf is your thing, you’re in luck. Join us – along with the Greater Inwood Partnership, Near Northwest Management District, and the Houston Flying Disc Golf Society – on March 19 and 20 for the inaugural Saint Arnold Inwood Open at the White Oak Conference Center.

This tournament is sanctioned by the Professional Disc Golf Association, but players of all skill levels are welcome. In addition to the fun, we’ll be raising money for Ronald McDonald House Houston, SNAP (Spay-Neuter Assistance Program), and GIP scholarship fund.

Ever wondered just how our wooden tanks are built? Wonder no more as we pull back the curtains and show the awesome analog craftsmanship behind them! Thanks to our friends at Arrow Tank we’ve been able to bring you Oak-aged Noble Rot, Immort Ale and Palo Santo Marron – all currently available!

And, for all you lovers out there … check out the special Valentine’s Day package we’re offering!

Pallet Magazine: Issue Two is on the way!

You may or may not have heard, but Dogfish Head founder Sam Calagione is contributing as executive editor of the new print quarterly Pallet magazine – created for people who like to ‘think and drink’, and those ‘only interested in everything’.

This issue features a piece penned by Sam on “pruno” and the ingenuity of brewing behind bars.

Single copies will be available Feb. 16, so be on the lookout at your local bookstore, Barnes & Noble and Whole Foods. Get all the deets at allthingspallet.com.